The Great Mage Returns After 4000 Years Book 2: Chapter 551

Book 2: Chapter 551

“The [Hope Herb] is a miraculous flower that can strengthen the earth's veins and explosively increase the vital energy of the forest just by planting it.”
With a dry voice that Lucas still wasn't accustomed to, Min Ha-rin continued her explanation.
“Even in dead lands where plants can no longer grow, it’s the same. Even on planets below freezing temperatures, if they can properly root, they could form a vast forest in a short period, provided there is a good climate, fertile soil, and proper care.”
This was the answer she gave when asked about her purpose in searching for the Hope Herb after returning to the cave.
Lukas stared blankly at her face.
Rather than coldness, her face had a inorganic glass quality to it. He asked,
“Why do you need that?”
“There is a tribe of the forest who lost their home due to the [Great Fusion]… Ah, the Great Fusion is.”
“I know. You don't need to explain.”
“…There are tribes of the forest that have lost their homeland due to the Great Fusion. Since they can only nourish themselves from unspoiled nature, their current state without forests is extremely dangerous. They are on the verge of extinction, so it wouldn't be strange for them to take drastic actions.”
Lukas was aware of many races called the forest tribes, but those Min Ha-rin spoke of were among the most extreme.
Their lives were inextricably linked with the forest, so damage to the forest meant direct harm to their lives.
Most of them were usually gentle-natured, but driven to such circumstances…
“They might attack others in different territories. That would lead to war.”
“Yes.”
Min Ha-rin nodded.
“That’s why I told them I would find a way to revive the forests.”
“How did you learn about the Hope Herb? And how did you come to this universe?”
“I heard from Arid. After master disappeared, Arid continued to train his powers and now can find not only the coordinates of each universe but also anything I need.”
Lukas could hardly believe how much stronger Arid had become compared to the last time he remembered.
“So… honestly, I find it hard to believe that master is still alive. Even Arid couldn't find you with his powers.”
“……”
The Void is a concept existing outside the space that Arid can perceive.
“You said Arid's powers have gotten stronger. Surely you don’t mean Arid has also been to the ‘Bottom Universe'—”
“No. Only I have been in that place.”
Min Ha-rin denied Lukas's possibility with an emotionless voice and continued.
“Inter-universal travel became easily possible after the Great Fusion, regardless of whether one has a physical body.”
“……”
“More so, the current situation in this universe seems not just an aftermath of the ‘Great Fusion.' From my limited Observational Skill, it appears as though destruction or collapse is occurring…”
Her eyes, which demanded explanation rather than teachings, were directed at him.
Lukas was silent for a moment.
Min Ha-rin of course did not know about the ‘Apocalypse.' It would be so. Very few knew this dreadful truth as far as Lukas was aware.
Should he really inform her about the Apocalypse now?
Certainly, if it were the past Min Ha-rin, Lukas would have hidden this truth without hesitation.
But.
“Meeting you was an incredible coincidence.”
Coincidence.
No, perhaps it was closer to fate, but it seemed almost ridiculous to think so.
Lukas had lived five lives in the Void World, and it was only in the last one that he had met Min Ha-rin. Strictly speaking, their paths had missed crossing four times.
“…There is a world with entirely different laws that exist. A place that even Arid's enhanced abilities cannot detect, a place that most should not know or even dare to know about. In that place, there is a location connected to 77 worlds. Due to personal reasons, I had to pass through all those worlds, and it was in the twenty-third world that I coincidentally met you.”
“I see.”
Min Ha-rin nodded understandingly.
She wasn’t just matching him word for word or pretending not to understand; she truly grasped the general situation Lukas described.
Being emotionless is so convenient like this. If the sole purpose is the sharing of information, devoid of empathy, it can be achieved so easily. …From a certain point of view, it's understandable that this could be dismissed as unnecessary. I already get it.
[Stop getting depressed. It’s annoying.]
At Residue's words, Lukas came to his senses and pointed to the sky.
At the waterfall of Apocalypse pouring down from there.
“It's falling from above.”
“Yes. It looks like it's falling from the sky.”
“That's not what I mean. It’s a completely different concept of ‘above'.”
“……?”
Min Ha-rin tilted her head slightly, seemingly unable to understand.
Perhaps this reaction was the only human habit left in her.
“The place I stayed was shaped like a tower.”
He waved his hand, moving a snowball.
The snow on the ground buoyantly rose and formed the shape of a tower.
“The coordinates of the universe are very complex and, above all, fluid. This is because each possesses a different time.”
What is one second in some worlds, could be tens of thousands of years in others.
This concept should be understandable to the current Min Ha-rin.
“However, the tower I was climbing ‘perfectly connected 77 worlds.' Though there are restrictions, it’s closely related enough that communication is possible even between different universes. It’s not that the universes themselves were merged. It’s a form stitched together in parts, extremely unstable, but still, how could this have been achieved?”
“……”
“…So the being that stitched the universes together, does it possess a profound understanding of space and formidable powers?”
“That's one of the reasons. But it's not the core. The answer is ‘the flow of time'.”
Min Ha-rin blinked, and Lukas supplemented the explanation.
“All 77 universes belonging here had ‘the same flow of time'.”
This was the crucial reason why the Magic Tower, and The Beginning Wizard, were able to connect 77 worlds partially.
The Beginning Wizard likely observed the universes over a very long period, selecting those with exactly the same time flow without a single error.
That task would have been arduous, tough, and above all, tedious, but The Beginning Wizard eventually accomplished his goal.
‘Of course, after the Great Fusion, the timelines of all universes were unified.'
Except for a few special places like the Corpse Ghost's ‘Dump Site'.
Perhaps this is also why Arid became able to specify the coordinates of the universe.
Lukas paused his thoughts there.
These are facts grasped around the time he had ascended to about the 10th floor, but he still doesn’t know the most important thing.
Why did The Beginning Wizard build the Magic Tower?
To train wizards above a certain level? No. Such a reason is too trivial to justify the existence of the tower.
There must be some other reason…
“……”
Realizing Min Ha-rin was staring at him, Lukas spoke again.
“…After connecting them, he relocated the position of the universes and also managed to unite space as a material concept.”
The concepts of up, down, left, right, and front, back do not exist between universes. As mentioned earlier, based on complex coordinates that ordinary people could not understand even if explained over a hundred days, it moves.
To put it as simply as possible, imagine the sea oscillating every moment, and each droplet within it is a universe.
But the Magic Tower is different.
It arranged 77 universes like a tower and then forcibly threaded them together,
That is, he succeeded in fixing the universes in a linear form. This is a feat even the current Lukas cannot achieve, and the amount of effort and trial and error The Beginning Wizard must have repeated to accomplish this is unimaginable.
By now, Min Ha-rin would have understood what Lukas meant by ‘above'.
“…Then that ominous waterfall is flowing from the ‘universe above'.”
“Yes.”
Lukas nodded as he continued,
“The true nature of the waterfall is… Apocalypse.”
“Apocalypse, you say?”
“It might soon envelop the entire universe, the end of everything.”
“…I see.”
Min Ha-rin nodded.
“So, Master is fighting against this Apocalypse.”
“……”
Lukas momentarily closed his half-open mouth.
Since parting with Min Ha-rin, many things had happened, and Lukas's purpose had continuously evolved. But currently, he indeed was struggling to prevent the Apocalypse.
That’s as much as Lukas could tell.
The reason for climbing the tower, his relationship with The Beginning Wizard, and even the remnants of the Lightning God residing within him… He felt no need or reason to reveal these core aspects.
He looked at his disciple.
The current Min Ha-rin, now a wholly rational being, might set aside her responsibilities after hearing this story.
That would be enough.
‘I will find Harin’s emotions, somehow.'
Even if it means overturning whatever lies at the Bottom Universe.
So until then, hopefully, she stays safe and causes no disturbances.
“…Indeed.”
Min Ha-rin murmured after a while,
“Then regarding that matter, there seems to be nothing I can do.”
The expected response came.
However, Lukas felt, somehow, that Min Ha-rin, who maintained her expression and tone, seemed a bit deflated.
…It must be an illusion.
“I will help you find the Hope Herb. If you need anything else, I’ll help with that too. But afterward, go back to Earth and stay still for a while.”
“……”
Lukas looked at the unresponsive Min Ha-rin and suddenly felt like sighing.
Hope Herb.
A terribly ironic name for a being who has forgotten what hope is.
* * *
After a brief silence, Min Ha-rin spoke,
“After that, you will go up, towards the source of the Apocalypse, won’t you?”
“Yes.”
“That’s regrettable.”
Lukas hesitated.
“Everyone would be delighted to see the master’s face.”
“……”
“I have something I’d like to ask.”
“What is it?”
“How did you become so strong?”
A strange fervor flickered in Min Ha-rin’s eyes.
“Even in the past, Master you were undoubtedly strong. To me back then, you were like a cloud beyond a mountain whose peak was not visible.”
“……”
“You might think this a presumptuous statement, but since then, I have managed to reach the peak of the mountain. Only then could I truly measure how powerful ‘the master of that time' was. But now…”
Her voice carried a hint of distress.
“The master today is incomparably stronger than before. It seems you have surpassed the final stages of wizardry I had glimpsed, and I cannot even imagine where you stand now.”
Saying she saw the end means she saw a limit.
Lukas did not consider Min Ha-rin’s words arrogance, but he thought them a misconception.
A recent thought had occurred to him.
Does an end truly exist in any field of study?
To see an end, must one not see the end of everything?
And can the scenery one sees truly be considered the end?
Perfection, completeness, omnipotence—are these real?
Lukas shook his head.
In front of Min Ha-rin, Lukas still wanted to be a teacher. That's why he thought deeply before even uttering a single statement.
“If I tell you, will you follow my way of life?”
“If necessary.”
Her answer came without weight, yet it was undoubtedly sincere.
How harsh and tough Lukas's life has been doesn't matter to the current Min Ha-rin. To her, the only important thing is the ‘reward of strength' that comes afterward.
“…It’s a life you cannot follow. There's no guarantee that experiencing the same things would make you strong.”
“You mean you don’t want to tell me.”
“That’s right.”
Min Ha-rin spoke after a moment of silence.
“Still, I need to know.”
She persisted stubbornly, yet her demeanor remained matter-of-fact.
“If I knew the reason why the master could become stronger, then I could save more people. I have one thing to ask, though—there isn’t some condition for going ‘up' there, is there?”
“There shouldn’t be… But you, surely not.”
“Yes.”
Min Ha-rin nodded as if she had already made up her mind.
“I would like to accompany the master for the time being.”
*****